Hawaii and other parts of the Pacific were braced for a destructive tsunami today. Tsunami sirens were sounded and coastal areas were evacuated in Hawaii, where the first waves were expected to hit about 3 a.m. (1300 GMT) today.

Meanwhile the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre widened its alert beyond East Asia to include Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, the entire US western coast, Mexico and Central and South America and the rest of the Pacific Ocean.